Observation / Reflection #5: The Game of School, In The Passionate Teacher, Ron Fried describes the Game of School (GOS) as what happens when teachers and students forsake intellectual work and instead engage in their classes as rituals. Take this opportunity to consider this chapter in light of some of the the other experiences that you've had this semester. What elements of the game of school are you seeing in your placements? How have you seen teachers fight the game of school in their classes? What similarities, if any, did you see between the descriptions of American classes in the Teaching Gap and the Game of School? Finally, what impact will this description of the GOS have on your own approach to teaching as expressed in your teaching philosophy?
From my observations one of the main things that stands out to me would have to be how my CT uses powerpoint presentations. Everytime I have gone to observe there is a powerpoint presentation. Granted powerpoints are easy and don't get me wrong I feel they can be very effective, if utilized in conjunction with something else. Some teachers just hand out the powerpoint slides so the students don't even have to take notes on it, which really just frees up their time to do other things. Other teachers hand out note guides with some words blacked out that the students need to fill in. This at least forces the student to pay a little bit of attention to the presentation but their is no thought involved. I do not feel that having students go home and read and take notes on a chapter is something that should be done on a regular basis but I do feel there is a benefit to reading the chapter, taking notes on it and then using the powerpoint to emphasize the crucial ideas within the chapter. Then the students are not only learning visually by reading the chapter, they are also writing the information which helps in knowledge retention. This also helps in their note taking abilities and when comparing their notes with the powerpoint they can start to learn where the main points of a section are located and also fill in any information they might have missed. There are a lot of different techniques that can be used, jig saw, find the sage, etc, but these activities take more time in terms of planning and implementing and it is just easier and faster to tell them what they need to know.
Another area that I have noticed is that teachers are required to participate in professional development seminars, or observe other teachers, or this, that, and the other thing. I'm not saying professional development is not important but there was a time when my CT was not in her classroom for a week because of all these other obligations. As a result the momentum that she has been building up is interrupted, she now has to figure out what kind of work to give the substitute that 1) he will be able to manage and
2) is not just busy work. On top of that everyone knows how students get when they have a substitute, it's like a free period, so if you weight the pros and cons of taking the teachers out of the classroom or even just cancelling school for professional development I am not sure it's really worth it. I think there has to be away where teachers can still get that continuing education without sacraficing the students educations.
The GOS is a battle that will be going on for along time. The only thing I can do in terms of its impact on my teaching is to try and minimize it. I can plan my lessons in a way that engages my students in the learning process. If I know I will be out of the classroom for a while I can try and get to a point in the unit where while I'm gone my students can be working on a diorama, or poster, or some other activity thats related to the topic, where they know what needs to be done, they have the resources to do it, and that is something the substitute can handle. I can also ask a coworker to come and observe a lesson and provide feedback because maybe I am playing the GOS without even realizing it. What I'm trying to say is that I can't control when the seminars are scheduled, or what they have me do, the only thing I can control is my actions as a teacher and try my best to off set the impact the GOS has on my students education.
From my observations one of the main things that stands out to me would have to be how my CT uses powerpoint presentations. Everytime I have gone to observe there is a powerpoint presentation. Granted powerpoints are easy and don't get me wrong I feel they can be very effective, if utilized in conjunction with something else. Some teachers just hand out the powerpoint slides so the students don't even have to take notes on it, which really just frees up their time to do other things. Other teachers hand out note guides with some words blacked out that the students need to fill in. This at least forces the student to pay a little bit of attention to the presentation but their is no thought involved. I do not feel that having students go home and read and take notes on a chapter is something that should be done on a regular basis but I do feel there is a benefit to reading the chapter, taking notes on it and then using the powerpoint to emphasize the crucial ideas within the chapter. Then the students are not only learning visually by reading the chapter, they are also writing the information which helps in knowledge retention. This also helps in their note taking abilities and when comparing their notes with the powerpoint they can start to learn where the main points of a section are located and also fill in any information they might have missed. There are a lot of different techniques that can be used, jig saw, find the sage, etc, but these activities take more time in terms of planning and implementing and it is just easier and faster to tell them what they need to know.
Another area that I have noticed is that teachers are required to participate in professional development seminars, or observe other teachers, or this, that, and the other thing. I'm not saying professional development is not important but there was a time when my CT was not in her classroom for a week because of all these other obligations. As a result the momentum that she has been building up is interrupted, she now has to figure out what kind of work to give the substitute that 1) he will be able to manage and
2) is not just busy work. On top of that everyone knows how students get when they have a substitute, it's like a free period, so if you weight the pros and cons of taking the teachers out of the classroom or even just cancelling school for professional development I am not sure it's really worth it. I think there has to be away where teachers can still get that continuing education without sacraficing the students educations.
The GOS is a battle that will be going on for along time. The only thing I can do in terms of its impact on my teaching is to try and minimize it. I can plan my lessons in a way that engages my students in the learning process. If I know I will be out of the classroom for a while I can try and get to a point in the unit where while I'm gone my students can be working on a diorama, or poster, or some other activity thats related to the topic, where they know what needs to be done, they have the resources to do it, and that is something the substitute can handle. I can also ask a coworker to come and observe a lesson and provide feedback because maybe I am playing the GOS without even realizing it. What I'm trying to say is that I can't control when the seminars are scheduled, or what they have me do, the only thing I can control is my actions as a teacher and try my best to off set the impact the GOS has on my students education.